MIDLAND, Texas---A leading hospital in Texas is making a name for itself by taking on the ranching industry, an iconic fixture in the history of the Lone Star State. The hospital is now promoting a plant-based diet rich in vegetables and whole grains for patients and visitors.
First, here's adefinition. "Plant-based" diet means ingestion of fruits, vegetables, legumes like alfalfa, peas, beans and peanuts, and no meat.
Nurturing cattle, sending them to the feed lot and then onto the slaughterhouse, is a part of the culture here, burnished into a big part of what makes Texas, Texas. Now, Midland MemorialHospital, a major medical player in the heart of cattle country, has become the first in the state to buck that culture.
But let's begin this story with Terry Drummer, a retired professor. Last summer he had a heart attack. Doctors put a book in his hands, a book about plants, and they said, 'You have to make a choice.’
"And I'm sitting there sweating. I say, 'ok, I'm going to die,'" he explained.
The choice was stark and uneqivocal; undergo heart surgery, perhaps several surgeries, or learn about the medicinal qualities of plants and maybe give that a try instead.
"Do I want my chest ripped open? Or do I want to read a book?" he asked rhetorically.
The book was blunt. It told Drummer to give up beef, chicken, sausage, bacon, salt, sugar and fast food, items he said he once loved but now loathes. He met the challenge.
"I lose about three to four pounds a month. I eat all want. And it's all vegetarian," he said.
Drummer is still recovering. He has lost weight and the need for so much medicine.
“I’ve gone from 15 pills to four," he continued.
In the end, Drummer’s cardiac surgeon Staton Awtrey did not need to perform surgery. And Dr. Awtrey gives credit to Drummer's diet and will to become healthier for that.
"We decided to embark on offering plant-based meals first for the patients as a prescribed diet," Awtrey said. "And then to roll that out and offer that to staff and visitors."
The hospital has company in the land of fried chicken and barbecue. University of North Texas has an all plant-based diningcommons.
"They might change their diet to not have a heart attack. But they have all these collateral benefits they never anticipated," Awtrey concluded.
Awtrey also claimed a plant based diet will mitigate or reverse and ultimately cure arthritis, diabetes and hypertension. And pointing to Drummer as an example, Awtrey said plant-based food promotes weight loss and the ability to get off certain kinds of medications.
“It is becoming mainstreamand to deny it is just a fallacy. This is coming. We just want to be at the head of the pack."
The U.S. government issues food guidelines every five years. Its latest, in January, says low-fat dairy—milk, yogurt, cheese—and lean meat and chicken are part of a balanced diet.
But it gives a nod to plant-based diets, saying you should also consume the essence of a plant-based diet—-legumes like beans and soy products.
Terry Drummer says he doesn't need a study to support his move to jettison meat.
"I tell you what. When death looks you in the face and you laugh at it, well I'm proud that I could do the vegetation, ‘cause I love it," he said beaming a Texas-sized smile.
That will almost certainly be hard pitch in this state for a long time. Ranchers are resilient in the face of despite up-and-down prices, changing tastes and now, a hospital urging people to eat their vegetables.